‘Arts Alive LI’ Fostering Arts, Creativity All October

Island-wide, multi-venue festival showcasing finest in culture, artistry

For the month of October, Long Islanders won’t have to travel into Manhattan to get an art and culture fix.

On Sept. 27, the Cradle of Aviation Museum, located at 1 Davis Ave. in Garden City, hosted representatives from the Long Island Arts Alliance (LIAA), Bethpage Federal Credit Union, the Long Island Community Foundation and local elected officials as they announced the month-long festivities promoting Long Island’s finest artists and their works.

Construction Time Again

2009 School Investment Bond results shown off in tour of new look Homestead School

New was the operative word last Thursday at the Homestead School.

New year, new students, and in this case, a new look.

Before the Garden City Board of Education held its first regular meeting for the new school year, it was time to take a tour. The 2009 School Investment Bond has allowed the district to make significant improvements to its buildings, and all were invited to check out some of the changes at Homestead.

Opening Day In Garden City Public Schools

Not much matches the first-day excitement of a new school year. Waiting at the bus stop or walking to school sporting a brand new outfit and carrying a backpack filled with fresh school supplies occupies a special place in a student’s life.

On Sept. 4, the sense of a new beginning was palpable across the district as parents’ hopes and dreams waved goodbye from departing buses to be received by a sea of face-scrunching smiles, high fives, fist bumps and open arms from staff and one-year-older classmates as students entered their buildings for the first day of the 2012-13 school year.

Back To School Safety Series

This the final part of the four-part series of articles by the Garden City Police Department addressing Back to School Safety Issues. In the previous three newspaper articles we addressed “Safe Driving Practices,” “School Bus Safety” and “Pedestrian/Bicyclist Safety.” This week’s article will cover “Stranger Danger.” Parents, grandparents, guardians and teachers are encouraged to use this article to help teach their children about Stranger Danger.

GC Honors 9/11 Victims On 11th Anniversary

Mayor Brudie leads turnout of officials and residents in paying homage to local residents

Over 50 Garden City residents attended a memorial at the Village Green for the 11th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 World Trade Center attacks. Held by the Garden City Fire Department and attended by Village of Garden City Mayor Donald T. Brudie and other village officials, everyone stood silently in prayer and remembrance for the 23 Garden City residents who were killed 11 years ago.

Ex-chief John Casey opened the ceremony with a prayer, saying: “We gather today to recall the events of September 11. We lift up to you, all the people who died in 9/11...those who died in the attacks, those who responded, those who now fight in wars as a result of that dark day, and those who are still mourning the loss of their loved ones every day.”

Meditating On The Evils Of Sex Trafficking

One Love Long Island hosts 2012 Yoga Festival

According to a 2009 report released by India’s Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), more than 1.2 million children are involved in prostitution and sex trafficking in that country. It’s these kind of horrific statistics that gave the ladies who make up One Love Long Island (OLLI) the impetus to get involved working with Off the Mat, Into the World (OTM), an organization that uses the power of yoga to inspire conscious and sustainable activism in order to ignite grassroots social change. Every year, OTM sponsors an international service project called the Global Seva Challenge that involves picking a country and cause in need. This year India is the country and the scourge that is sex trafficking is the social ill that’s being addressed.

St. James Celebrates 85th Anniversary

Church has storied history in town of Stewart Manor

St. James Lutheran Church held its first service on Ash Wednesday, March 2, 1927, in a home at 62 Salisbury Ave., with only twelve people in attendance. Now 85 years later, the church has grown and resides at its permanent location since 1939 on Chester Avenue and Elton Road.

As of 1996, Pastor John S. McKenzie has been the fourth standing pastor of the church. Despite the long history, the church has only had a total of four pastors, beginning with Pastor Morecraft during its opening in 1929.

Redistricting Commission Announces Hearings

Commissioners attempt to move forward in a bipartisan way; League of Women Voters advocates nonpartisan process

While the previous meeting of the Nassau County Temporary Redistricting Advisory Commission on Thursday, June 28 was somewhat contentious, the mood at the latest meeting on Wednesday, Sept. 5 was very different, with both Democratic and Republican commissioners largely agreeing on most points raised. The commission announced the times and locations of the first round of public hearings on the 2013 redistricting, intended to solicit feedback from residents before the drawing of the new district map, then discussed the logistics of future hearings.

The four public hearings scheduled so far will take place Thursday, Sept. 20 at Long Beach City Hall at 6 p.m.; Monday, Sept. 24 at Elmont Public Library at 7 p.m.; Thursday, Sept. 27 at Glen Cove Landing School at 6 p.m.; and Wednesday, Oct. 3 at the Nassau County Legislative Chambers in Mineola at 6 p.m.

Happy 85th Birthday Stewart Manor

Residents gather to celebrate a community of neighbors and friends

On August 19, 2012, Stewart Manor celebrated its 85th anniversary as an incorporated village. The anniversary was celebrated on the day itself at the Stewart Manor Pool. Cake and cookies were distributed to happy children and adults alike. The highlight of the afternoon concert by Pat the Piano Man was the rousing chorus of Happy Birthday sung by partygoers.

TVASNAC Brings The Noise To Stewart Manor

Aviation consultant provides potential solutions for aircraft noise issues

On Monday, August 27, the Village of Stewart Manor hosted a meeting of the Town-Village Aircraft Safety & Noise Abatement Committee (TVASNAC) at the Stewart Manor Country Club. While this Town of Hempstead-sponsored group regularly meets in the village of Lawrence, the site location was switched to Stewart Manor for the first time ever. A turnout of between 50 and 60 residents from different communities ranging from Floral Park and Hempstead to Ozone Park and Garden City attended. The evening’s topic centered on the benefits of conducting a Part150 study, a voluntary program that U.S. airports may undertake to seek a balance between their operational needs and the noise impact their operations have on surrounding neighborhoods. Manhasset aviation consultant Henry A.F. Young of Young Environmental Sciences, Inc. was the speaker invited to provide professional insight on the complexities of Part150 and to answer questions from the board and audience.